Friday, February 13, 2009

Fashion Week Get the Boot at Bryant Park

(NEW YORK) Although the CFDA and IMG Fashion are holding a press conference this afternoon, the fashion world is buzzing that the news has already broken. Starting in 2010, Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week will no longer be held in Bryant Park, but in Lincoln Center. Bryant Park has been the hub of Fashion Week since 1993, interrupted only by a season-long stint at Chelsea Piers, but recently, its future as host has come into question after disputes with park management about lack of space and disruption of park activities. According to the New York Times, two designers who usually show in the Tents were told that the new space would be at Lincoln Center, although there will be no official confirmation until this afternoon. In total, Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week draws about 100,000 people to the Tents each year, generating $466 million in visitor spending.

UPDATE: The reports were confirmed today, when Mayor Michael Bloomberg said in a press conference with CFDA president Diane Von Furstenberg and IMG Fashion senior vice president Fern Mallis that the shows would indeed be centered in Lincoln Center's Damrosch Park beginning in September 2010.

"The fashion industry is a vital part of our City's economy, providing more than 175,000 jobs and generating billions of dollars in wages for New Yorkers annually," said Mayor Bloomberg. "Ensuring the industry's long-term success and promoting Fashion Week - the industry's greatest showcase - is more important than ever as we work to retain and create jobs during these difficult times and diversify the City's economy. We were determined to work with the Council of Fashion Designers of America and IMG Fashion to identify a location for Fashion Week that would allow it to grow and thrive in New York City, and we could not have arrived at more ideal location than Damrosch Park at Lincoln Center."

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